Tensioner



y 21, 1963 3 c. G. REED 3,384,322

TENSIONER Filed June 15, 1966 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOI? CARL G. REEDA/zia ATTORNEY y 1, 1968 c. G. REED 3,334,322

TENSIONER Filed June 15, 1966 4 SheetsSheet 2 TE'HJT "IL' I L- .L"i 1-1W] I L-..

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mi k/won CARL a. REED ATTORNEY y 1968 c. G. REED 3,384,322

TENSIONER Filed June 15, 1966 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 F/GL? /a /22 we f FIG. 4

0 M/VE/VTGR CARL G. 19550 MJZL ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,384,322TENSIONER Carl G. Reed, Boone, N.C., assignor to IRC, Inc.,Philadelphia, Pa. Filed June 15, 1966, Ser. No. 557,807 Claims. (Cl.242--156.2)

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A tensioner for controlling the tensionapplied to a continuous filament, such as a thread or wire, as it isdereeled from a spool, comprising a support having a filament supplyspool arbor rotatably mounted thereon. An electrical motor is mounted onthe support and drivingly connected to the arbor. The motor is rotatablein a direction to rotate the arbor in a direction opposite to thedirection the filament tends to rotate the arbor as the filament isdereeled from the supply spool so as to apply a tension on the filament.A dancer arm is mounted on the support for pivotal movement about apoint on the dancer arm intermediate its ends. A filament guide isprovided on one end of the dancer arm over which the filament passes asthe filament is dereeled from the supply spool. Another electrical motoris mounted on the support and is drivingly connected to the dancer armat the point of pivotation of the dancer arm. The dancer arm motor isrotatable in a direction to pivot the dancer arm in a direction oppositeto the direction the filament tends to pivot the dancer arm as thefilament passes over the filament guide so as to apply a tension on thefilament. Brake means is provided for stopping the rotation of thearbor. The brake means is actuated by the dancer arm when slack appearsin the filament for applying the brake means for rotation of the arbor.Each of the motors includes means for varying the torque of the motor soas to control the tension applied to the filament.

The present invention relates to a tensioner, and more particularly to atensioner for controlling the tension applied to a continuous filament,such as a thread or wire, as it is de-reeled from a spool.

In the winding of a continuous filament, such as a thread or wire, on awinding form, such as a spool or bobbin, it is desirable .to maintain auniform tension on the filament to achieve a smooth and uniform windingon the winding form. The amount of tension which can be applied to afilament without exceeding the yield strength of the filament depends onthe thickness of the filament and the strength of the material of thefilament. Thus, the tension which can be applied to very fine filamentsis much less than that which can be applied to heavier filaments. Also,the uniformity of this tension applied to the filament is more criticalthan that applied to the heavier filaments. Therefore, in addition tobeing able to maintain a uniform tension on the filament as it is woundon the winding form, it is also desirable to be able to accurately setthe tension being applied so that the filament is under the optimumtension according to its thickness and strength.

Another problem in winding a filament on a winding form arises when thewinding operation is stopped. During the winding operation, the rotatingsupply spool from which the filament is de-reeled builds up sufficientmomentum that it will continue to rotate even though the rotation of thewinding form has stopped. This decreases the tension on the filament andallows slack to develop in the filament. Such slack can cause aloosening of the turns of the filament on the winding form and disruptthe smooth, uniform winding which is desired. There fore, it isdesirable for the supply spool to stop rotating 3,384,322 Patented May21, 1968 "ice at the same time that the winding operation stops and thatthe tension applied to the filament during the winding operation bemaintained.

It is an object of the present invention .to provide a novel filamenttensioner.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a novel tensionfor controlling the tension applied to a continuous filament as it isde-reeled from a supply spool.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide afilament tension which applies a continuous, uniform tension on thefilament as it is de-reeled from a supply spool.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide atension for controlling the tension applied to a continuous filament asit is de-reeled from a supply spool which will maintain the desiredtension on the filament when the de-reeling is stopped.

Other objects will appear hereinafter.

For the purpose of illustrating the invention, there is shown in thedrawings a form which is presently preferred; it being understood,however, that this invention is not limited to the precise arrangementsand instrumentalities shown.

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view, partially broken away, of thefilament tensioner of the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is a front elevational view of the filament tensioner of thepresent invention taken along line 22 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a sectional View taken along line 33 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 5 is a sectional view taken along line FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 6 is a sectional view taken along line 6-6 of FIGURE 5.

FIGURE 7 is a circuit diagram of the electrical circuit for operatingand controlling the filament tensioner of the present invention.

Referring to FIGURES 1, 2 and 3 of the drawing, the filament tensionerof the present invention is generally designated as 10. In general,filament tensioner 10 comprises a rectangular housing, generallydesignated as 12, having a filament supply spool supporting arborrotatably mounted therein and extending horizontally from the frontthereof. A dancer arm 16 extends through the housing 12 spaced from andgenerally parallel to the arbor 14. The dancer arm 16 is supported at apoint between its ends for rotation about the supporting point in avertical plane. A pulley 18 is rotatably mounted on the front end of thedancer arm 16. A small A.C. electric motor 20 is mounted in the housing12 and is drivingly connected to the back end of the arbor 14. Asolenoid operated brake mechanism, generally designated as 22, isprovided to stop the rotation of the arbor 14. A small A.C. electricmotor 24 is mounted in the housing 12 and drivingly connected to thedancer arm 16 at its point of rotation. A pair of autotransformers 26and 28 are mounted on the housing 12 and connected to the arbor motor 20and dancer arm motor 24 respectively so as to permit a control of thespeed of the motors. A microswitch 30 is mounted on the housing 12adjacent the back end of the dancer arm 16. Microswitch 30 is connectedto the brake mechanism 22 so that downward movement of the back end ofthe dancer arm 16 actuates the microswitch 30 to actuate the brakemechanism 22.

In the use of the filament tensioner 10, a spool 32 of filament 34 ismounted on and secured to the arbor 14 so that the spool and arbor willrotate together. The filament 34 is threaded around an idler pulley 36,then over the dancer arm pulley 18 and then to a winding mechanism, notshown, for winding the filament on a winding form, such as a bobbin. Thearbor motor 20 is operated to apply torque to the arbor 14 in thedirection opposite to normal rotation of spool 32 and arbor 14 as theyare rotated by the de-reeling of the filament 34 from the spool. Forexample, as the de-reeling of the filament 34 from the spool 32 rotatesthe spool and arbor counter-clockwise as viewed in FIGURE 2, the arbormotor 20 is operated to attempt to rotate the arbor clockwise. Thus, tode-reel the filament 34 from the spool 32, a force must be appliedsufficient to overcome the torque applied to the arbor 14 by the arbormotor 20, thereby applying a tension on the filament 34. This tension onthe filament can be varied by varying the torque applied by the arbormotor 20 by means of the autotransformer 26. The dancer arm motor 24 isoperated to rotate the dancer arm 16 clockwise as viewed in FIGURE 1.This tends to lift the front end of the dancer arm 16 upwardly, whereasthe de-reeling of the filament 34 from the spool 32 tends to pull thefront end of the dancer arm downwardly. Thus, the dancer arm 16 alsoapplies a tension on the filament 34 which can be controlled bycontrolling the torque of the dancer arm motor 24 by means of theautotransformer 28. Thus, during the de-reeling of the filament 34 fromthe spool 32, a desired uniform tension is applied to the filament sothat the filament is wound on the winding form under uniform tension.

When the winding mechanism is stopped, such as at the end of a windingcycle, the rotating spool 32 has sufiicient momentum to cause it tocontinue rotating in a counter-clockwise direction for an instant. Sincethe winding mechanism is stopped and is no longer taking up the filamentfrom the spool, this continued rotation of the spool causes the tensionin the filament to decrease and slack starts to develop in the filament.However, as the slack begins to develop in the filament 34, the rotatingdancer arm motor 24 lifts the front end of the dancer arm 16 upwardlyand thereby takes up the slack so that the tension in the filament ismaintained. This also lowers the back end of the dancer arm 16 so as toactuate the microswitch and thereby apply the braking mechanism 22.Thus, the rotation of the spool 32 is stopped with the filament 34maintained under the desired tension so that no turns of the filament onthe winding form are allowed to become loose.

Referring again to the drawings for a more detailed description of thefilament tensioner 10, the housing 12 comprises a front plate 38 and aback plate 40 secured together in spaced, parallel relation by cornermembers 42a, 42b, 42c and 420. at the corners of the plates 38 and 40. Apair of side plates 44a and 44b are connected between the front plate 38and the back plate 40 at the side edges thereof. A perforated metalcover strip 46 extends between and along the side and top edge of thefront and back plates 38 and 40 to cover the sides and top of thehousing 12. Mounting feet 48a and 48b are secured to the bottom cornermembers 420 and 42d respectively, and extend outwardly from the sides ofthe housing 12. The mounting feet 48a and 48b are provided withelongated slots 50a and 50b respectively through which a screw or boltcan extend to secure the wire tension 10 to a suitable base, not shown.

The arbor 14 extends horizontally into the housing 12 through an opening52 in the front plate 38 adjacent the upper member 42a, and is rotatablysupported by bearings in a bearing case 54 secured to .the inner surfaceof the front plate 38. A conical flange 56 is provided on the arbor 14adjacent the outer surface of the front plate 38 with the flangetapering radially inwardly away from the front plate 38. The free end 58of the arbor 14 is threaded, and a conical nut 60 is threaded on thearbor. The arbor motor 20 is mounted on the inner surface of the backplate 40 at the back end of the arbor 14. The shaft 62 of the arbormotor 20 is in alignment with the arbor 14 and is drivingly connected tothe arbor 14 by a coupling 64.

Brake mechanism 22 comprises a fiat, annular brake disc 66 surroundingand secured to the back portion of the arbor 14 adjacent the bearingcase 54. A U-shaped brake member 68 extends substantially verticallyacross the back surface of the brake disc 66 with the brake member arms70--70 extending across diametrically opposite sides of the arbor 14(see FIGURE 6). The brake member arms 70-70 are pivotally supported attheir upper ends on a rod 72. As shown in FIGURE 2, the rod 72 extendsparallel to the front plate 38 and is supported between the cornermember 42a and a supplemental member 74 secured between the front andback plates 38 and 40. Leather brake pads 7676 are secured to the brakemember arms 7070 and are positioned to engage the back surface of thebrake disc 66. As shown in FIG- URE 5, a brake solenoid 78 is mounted ona bracket 80 beneath the bearing case 54. The bracket 80 is secured tothe inner surface of the front plate 38. The solenoid plunger 82 ispivotally connected to a pin 84 which is connected between the brakemember arms 70-70. A rod 86 is secured to the inner surface of the frontplate 38 beneath the solenoid bracket 80. The rod 86 extends through aslot 88 in a plate 90' which extends across the front of the brakemember arms 70-70. A nut 92 is threaded on the free end of the rod 86. Ahelical spring 94 surrounds the rod 86 and is compressed between theinner surface of the front plate 38 and the plate 90. The spring 94normally holds the brake pads 7676 out of engagement with the brake disc66, and actuation of the brake solenoid 78 moves the brake pads 7676into engagement with the brake disc 66.

Dancer arm 16 comprises a front rod portion 96 and a back rod portion 98cannected to and extending diametrically from the periphery of acylinder 100. The front rod portion 96 and back rod portion 98 are inlongitudinal alignment with the front rod portion 96 extending throughavertically elongated opening 102 in the front plate 38 and the back rodportion extending through a vertically elongated opening 104 in the backplate 40. The dancer arm 16 is positioned adjacent the upper cornermember 42b of the housing 12. Pulley 18 is rotatably mounted on thefront end of the front rod portion 96 of the dancer arm 16 by ahorizontally extending shaft 106 which is perpendicular to the dancerarm. A weight 108 is mounted on the back end of the back rod portion 98of the dancer arm 16. The weight 108 is of a size to slightlyoverbalance the dancer arm 16 toward the back end of the dancer arm.Dancer :arm 16 is mounted on the end of the shaft 110 of the dancer armmotor 24. The motor shaft 110 is secured in an end of the cylinder 100and extends horizontally therefrom. The dancer arm motor 24 is mountedon a motor mount 112 which extends between and is secured to the frontplate 38 and the back plate plate 40.

A spring holder 114 is mounted on the inner surface of the front plate38 just below the opening 102 (see FIGURE 1). A helical spring 116 isseated in the spring holder 114. The front rod portion 96 of the dancerarm 16 rests on the top of the spring 116 so that the spring is under aslight compression. A pair of stop plates 118 and 120 are adjustablysecured to the outer surface of the back plate 40 above and below thedancer arm opening 104 to regulate the distance that the dancer arm 16can rotate. A small helical spring 122 is secured to the upper stopplate 118 and is engageable by the dancer arm 16 to act as a shockabsorber.

The microswitch 30 is mounted on the inner surface of the back panel 40adjacent the dancer arm opening 104. As shown in FIGURE 4, microswitch30 has a leaf spring type activating arm 124 extending substantiallyvertically and tangentially across the back rod portion 98 of the dancerarm 16. The actuating arm 124 is bent at its upper end to provide acamming surface which is engaged by the back rod portion 98 of thedancer arm 16 to open the microswitch 30 when the back rod portion 98 isrotated upwardly.

An idler pulley mounting post 126 is secured to the outer surface of thefront plate 38 adjacent the bottom corner member 42c and beneath thedancer arm 16. The idler pulley 36 is rotatably mounted on the end ofthe mounting post 126 by a shaft 128 which extends perpendicular to thefront plate 38. Thus, the idler pulley 36 rotates about an axis which isperpendicular to the axis of rotation of the dancer arm pulley 18. Thearbor motor autotransformer 26 and the dancer arm motor autotransformer28 are mounted on the front plate 38 with their actuating shaftsextending through the front plate. Knobs 130 and 132 are provided on theends of the shafts of the autotransformers 26 and 28 respectively toactuate the autotransformers. Indicator plates 134 and 136 are providedon the outer surface of the front plate 38 for the autotransformers 26and 28. An ofi-on switch 138 and a combination pilot light and fuse 140are also mounted on the front plate 38. As shown in FIGURE 1, an airblower 142 is mounted on the back plate 40 at an opening 144 in the backplate. The air blower 142 provides cooling air through the housing 12. Afoot switch 146 is connected through a cable 148 to a connector 150 onthe back plate 40. As will be explained, the foot switch 146 iselectrically connected to operate the brake mechanism 22 and the dancerarm motor 24.

FIGURE 7 is a circuit diagram of the electrical components of thefilament tensioner 10. The filament tensioner operates on standard 120volt, 6O cycle A.C. current. A three terminal plug 152 is provided forconnecting the circuit of the filament tensioner to the source of theAC. current. One terminal of the plug 152 is connected to ground. Theother two terminals of the plug 152 are connected to lines 154 and 156across Which the electrical components of the filament tensioner 10 areelectrically connected. The off-on switch 138 is provided in both lines154 and 156. The pilot light 140a is connected between the lines 154 and156 and has a current limiting resistor 158 in series therewith. Thefuse 14% is provided in line 154 between the off-on switch 138 and theremainder of the circuit. The air blower 142 and the arbor motorautotransformer 26 are also connected between the lines 154 and 156. Thearbor motor is connected between the variable terminal of theautotransformer 26 and the line 156. The dancer arm motorautotransformer 28 is connected between the line 156 and one terminal ofthe connector 150 for the foot switch 148, and the dancer arm motor 24is connected between the line 156 and the variable terminal of theautotransformer 28. One terminal of the solenoid 78 is connected to theline 156 and the other terminal of the solenoid is connected to a secondterminal of the connector 150. The solenoid 78 is mechanically connectedto the brake mechanism for the arbor motor 20 as indicated by the line170. The third terminal of the connector 150 is connected to line 154.The microswitch is connected between the line 154 and the terminal ofthe solenoid 78 which is also connected to connector 150. Microswitch isnormally in its closed condition until its actuating arm is depressed.Foot switch 148 is a three terminal, two contact switch. One terminal160 of the foot switch 148 is connected to the line 154 through thethird terminal of the connector 150. A second terminal 162 of the footswitch 148 is connected to the dancer arm motor autotransformer 28through the one terminal of the connector 150. The third terminal 164 ofthe foot switch 148 is con nected to the other terminal of the solenoid78 through the second terminal of the connector 150. One contact 166 ofthe foot switch 148 extends between the terminals 160 and 162 and isnormally closed. The other contact 168 of the foot switch 148 extendsbetween the terminals 160 and 164 and is normally open. When theoperator steps on the foot switch 148, the contact 168 is closed and thecontact 166 is opened.

In the use of the filament tensioner 10, the operator removes the nut 60from the arbor 14 and places the filament spool 32 on the arbor in sucha manner that it will de-reel in a counterclockwise direction. The nut60 is threaded back on the end 58 of the arbor and is tightened againstthe spool 32 until the spool is tightly clamped between the nut 60 andthe conical flange 56. The filament 34 is then threaded around thebottom of the idler pulley 36 and up and over the dancer arm pulley 18as shown in FIGURES 1 and 2. The autotransformers 26 and 28 are adjustedto the settings to provide the desired tension on the filament 34depending on the size and yield strength of the filament. The tensionson the filament 34 are adjusted so that the arbor motor 20 provides aslightly greater tension on the filament than the tension provided bythe dancer arm motor 24. The off-on switch 138 is then turned on.

To attach the filament 34 to the winding form on which the filament isto be wound, such as a bobbin, the operator pulls the end of thefilament to the winding form. This pulls downwardly on the front end ofthe dancer arm 16 so that the back end of the dancer arm moves upwardly.This rotation of the dancer arm 16 opens the microswitch 30 so as toturn off the electrical current to the brake solenoid 78 and releasesthe brake mechanism 22. At the same time, the operator depresses footswitch 148. This turns on the current to the brake solenoid 78 as toapply the brake mechanism 22 and, at the same time, turns off the dancerarm motor 24. With the brake mechanism 22 applied and the dancer armmotor 24 off, there is no tension being applied to the filament 34 bythe tensioner 10. The operator can then easily attach the end of thefilament 34 to the winding form. When the filament 34 is attached to thewinding form, the operator releases the foot switch 148 so as to restorecurrent to the dancer arm motor and release the brake mechanism 22. Thisleaves the dancer arm 16 in a substantially horizontal winding positionwit-h the previously selected tension being applied to the filament 34.

The operator then starts the winding machine which pulls the filament 34from the spool 32 against the torque of the arbor motor 20. This exertsa constant desired tension on the filament so as to provide a smooth,uniform Winding of the filament on the winding form. By having thetension applied to the filament of the arbor motor 20 slightly greaterthan that applied by the dancer arm motor 24, the front end of dancerarm 16 is prevented from rotating upward to accidentally apply the brakemechanism during the winding operation. When the desired amount of thefilament 34 is wound on the winding form, the winding machine isstopped. As previously stated, the rotation of the filament spool 32during thewinding operation develops a momentum in the spool whichcauses the spool to continue to rotate slightly after the windingmachine has stopped. Since the winding machine is not taking up thefilament 34, the tension in the filament 34 begins to decrease and slackbegins to develop. However, at this instant, the dancer arm motor 24rotates the front end of the dancer arm 16 upwardly so as to maintainthe tension on the filament 34 and prevent any loosening of the turns offilament on the winding form. This rotation of the dancer arm 16 causesthe back end of the dancer arm to release the depressed actuating arm124 of the microswitch 30 and thereby close the microswitch 30 so as toapply the brake mechanism 22. Thus, the rotation of the filament spool32 is immediately stopped so as to maintain the tension on the filament34 and prevent any loosening of the turns of the filament on the windingform. The operator can then secure the other end of the filament to thewinding form and repeat the winding operation on another winding form.

Thus, it can be seen that the tensioner 10 of the present inventionprovides for the winding of a filament on a winding form under aconstant, uniform tension, so as to achieve a smooth and uniform windingon the winding form. Since the tension applied to the filament isdependent on the torque applied by the arbor motor 20 and the dance armmotor 24, this tension can be easily and accurately adjusted to thedesired tension required for the size and yield strength of the filamentbeing used by means of the autotransformers 26 and 28. When the windingmachine is stopped, the tensioner 10 immediately stops the rotation ofthe filament spool 32 and maintains the desired tension on the filament34 so as to prevent loosening of any of the turns of the filament on thewinding form and maintains the smooth, uniform winding on the windingform.

The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms withoutdeparting from the spirit or essential attributes thereof and,accordingly, reference should be made to the appended claims, ratherthan to the foregoing specification as indicating the scope of theinvention.

I claim:

1. A filament tensioner comprising a support, an arbor rotatably mountedon said support, means for securing a filament supply spool on saidarbor so that the spool rotates with said arbor, a dancer arm mounted onsaid support for pivotal movement about a point on the dancer armintermediate its ends, a filament guide on one end of said arm overwhich the filament passes as the filament is de-reeled from the supplyspool, an electric motor mounted on said support and drivingly connectedto said dancer arm at the point of pivotation of the dancer arm, saidmotor being rotatable in a direction to pivot the dancer arm in adirection opposite to the direction the filament tends to pivot thedancer arm as the filament passes over the filament guide so as to applya tension on the filament, a second electrical motor mounted on thesupport and drivingly connected to the arbor, said second motor beingrotatable in a direction to rotate the arbor in a direction opposite tothe direction the filament tends to rotate the arbor as the filament isde-reeled from the supply spool so as to apply a tension on thefilament, brake means for stopping the rotation of the arbor, and meansactuated by the dancer arm when slack appears in the filament forapplying said brake means to stop the rotation of the arbor.

2. A filament tensioner in accordance with claim 1 including separatemeans for varying the torque of each of the motors so as to control thetension applied to the filament.

3. A filament tensioner in accordance with claim 1 in which the brakearm includes a flat, annular brake disc surrounding and secured to thearbor, a brake arm pivotally mounted at one end on said support andextending across a surface of said brake disc, a solenoid mounted onsaid support and connected to said brake arm, said solenoid beingadapted to pivot said brake arm into engagement with said brake discwhen the solenoid is electrically actuated so as to apply the brake, andspring means engaging said brake arm normally holding brake arm awayfrom the brake disc.

4. A filament tensioner in accordance with claim 3 in which the meansfor actuating said brake means comprises an electrical switch mounted onthe support adjacent the dancer arm and electrically connected to thesolenoid, said switch being actuated by the dancer arm when slackappears in the filament so as to electrically actuate the solenoid andapply the brake.

5. A filament tensioner in accordance with claim 4 including a secondswitch electrically connected to the brake solenoid and to the secondmotor so that actuation of said second switch electrically actuates thesolenoid to apply the brake and simultaneously turn 011 the secondmotor.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,166,948 1/1916 Underhill 242252,163,039 6/1939 Hinricher 242156.2 2,177,489 10/1939 Jamieson 242-2,331,662 10/1943 Delano 24245 2,343,461 3/1944 Knaus et al 242452,605,055 7/1952 Scott et al. 242-45 2,981,491 4/1961 Eans 245453,101,912 8/1963 Bartlett 242-156.2 X 3,223,351 12/1965 Lemarchand242-154 STANLEY N. GILREATH, Primary Examiner.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No.3,384,322 May 21, 1968 Carl G. Reed It is certified that error appearsin the above identified patent and that said Letters Patent are herebycorrected as shown below:

In the heading to the' printed specification, line 4, "IRC, Inc.Philadelphia, Pa. should read 'IRW Inc. a corporation of Ohio Signed andsealed this 3rd day of March 1970.

(SEAL) Attest:

Edward M. Fletcher, Jr. WILLIAM E. SCHUYLER, JR.

Attesting Officer Commissioner of Patents

